While not perfect (no one expects it to be), "Pippin" captures the rambunctious, free-spirited delight of its rowdy '70s origins. A diverse cast, beaming with smiles and dressed in a rainbow of borrowed costumes unite in a bright, funky circus vibe. Full credit to the ensemble - from first to last - each commits to the outrageous, fun-loving and over-the-top spirit. The array of stripes, prints, glitter, flowers, feathers, sequins, greasepaint and more - all looking as if it emerged from the bottom of a moth-eaten trunk - gives "Pippin" an air of tattered, faded decadence. Occasional squeals of feedback, a bare stage and voices that aren't Martha Raye or Irene Ryan give the show a ring of authenticity. This is college theatre. This is the 1970s - and the Janis Joplin feel of the lyrics never felt so beautiful. read the full review...

The Oakride Middle student, who shared the role of Gavroche in the Naples Players production of "Les Miserables" this summer, appears throughout the second act as droll, deadpan, drop-dead-funny Theo. "I'm Theo," Sawyer told me over the phone. "I'm Catherine's son. I carry around a duck. He's like my best friend." read the full preview...

Stephen Schwartz (music and lyrics) and Roger O. Hirson (book) musical "Pippin" tells of a young prince on his search for the meaning of life. How appropriate then that FGCU plays host to this latest production.

One face that might be a few years away (we hope) from the beer bongs and all-nighters - and familiar to Neapolitans is 12-year-old Sawyer True.

Sawyer True as
Gavroche in the
Naples Players
production of
"Les Miserables."

The Oakride Middle student, who shared the role of Gavroche in the Naples Players production of "Les Miserables" this summer, appears throughout the second act as droll, deadpan, drop-dead-funny Theo.

"I'm Theo," Sawyer told me over the phone. "I'm Catherine's son. I carry around a duck. He's like my best friend."

In the context of "Pippin," the characters of Theo and Catherine help Pippin realize that an ordinary life might be fulfilling after all. And Theo gets some great one-liners.

Musical theatre wasn't always in the cards for True, although mom Sharon has appeared in a half-dozen Naples Players musicals, including "The Producers," "All Shook Up," "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," "Hello Dolly!" and "Pinkalicious."

A few years ago, after being signed up for a youth theater show in Fort Myers, Sawyer tells me that his response was "Sure. I'll try it out."

"It was fun," Sawyer told me. "I like it a lot.

"Laughing Phantom" led to "Schoolhouse Rock." And to dance class, voice lessons, parts in the Naples Players KidzAct program. When I talked to Sawyer, he'd just started with the Naples Youth Chorale.

The role in Pippin appeals to True because Theo is a "more challenging" part - vocally - than he's used to. "His voice is changing," Sharon True interjects, "and it's a wider range for him."

"Pippin" also offers experience.

"I like working with new people," Sawyer True said. "I like seeing how other theaters work … everyone was very welcoming."

The youth will get that chance to see how theaters work. Once "Pippin" closes, he and FGCU faculty member Gerritt VanderMeer, the Leading Player, will head into "Whistle Down the Wind" at TheatreZone.

And he's pretty sure that he wants to pursue musical theatre as a career.

The Naples Players will hold auditions for "Black Tie," the A.R. Gurney play, at 2 p.m. Saturday, October 26. Get the complete

The Naples Players (and other regional theaters) have gone back to the Gurney well several times. The playwright is a natural fit, especially with the area's heavy seasonal population, especially from the Northeast. "Sylvia," "Crazy Mary" and "Later Life" have all played in recent years. The playwright distills the experiences of Buffalo's vanishing WASP population in touching fashion; his small, keenly felt plays often wrap big themes inside small moments. The Florida Rep production of "Indian Blood" remains one of my favorite shows ever.

We caught up with Jones, but left the rest of the surprises in "Trailer Park," along with the cans of Natty Light and Hamms, in the cooler. You'll have to see the show to find out exactly who takes exactly what off at the Litter Box Show Palace.

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Season kicks off with a vengeance this month. I'm doing "Pippin," "Venus in Fur" and then catching a Sunday matinée of my dear friend Laurie Nienhaus' "A Teatime Travesty" on Sunday.

Next week, we get the premieres of "The Great American Trailer Park Musical," "Cats" and "Miss Witherspoon." The NEXT week, we get "Woyzeck," "All My Raisins in the Sun" and "Afterlife of the Rich and Famous."

I finally found some time to do some work on the blog.

■ Check out the new menu bar, in green (now in sexy gray!) above.

■ "for actors" has a direct link to the five-question actor survey.
"for directors" goes to the director survey. We've finally started to
get traction on that. Thank you to Andrea White and cast/crew members of
"The Great American Trailer Park Musical" for sending those responses in. Look for those in the upcoming weeks. Please take advantage of this quick, easy way to get some publicity for your production. I can't make it any easier for you.

■ "the season" is the list of every theater and presenting house and their shows. In all but a few cases (marked with an asterisk) I plan to review the productions. If you see an error or omission, please email me.

■ If you are planning *anything* that is not already on the calendar, please be warned that I don't have a lot of free dates left. There are ten (10) four-show weeks on my calendar so far, as well as three five-show weeks. Between Jan. 1 - April 3, 2014, I plan to see 46 productions.

■ In that same vein, if you want to pitch a story idea, four days before you open is too late. Three weeks before you open is better.

Kelley Curran in the Gulfshore Playhouse
production of "Venus in Fur."

Gulfshore Playhouse launches its season with "sexy, kinky" play "Venus in Fur" tonight. The theatre kicks off its first-ever "pay-what-you-can" previews with a large group from The Contemporaries, followed Thursday night by a $20 preview and the official opening Friday.

The play is called "Venus in Fur." The cover of at least one published edition of the work shows a woman
wearing stockings and garters. Pictured from the rear, of course. Cutouts of two tiny hearts peek out from the exact spot where the gluteus maximus begins that mysterious journey into the thigh muscle,
where the seams of stockings drift downward on long, lean, sensuous
legs. This woman, named Vanda in the play, perches with confidence on
towering heels. A whip curls in her hand, almost as if she's caressing
the instrument. As the audience soon learns, Vanda knows how to use every weapon at
her disposal, from whip to wit, in a battle of wills and power that may
leave Neapolitan audiences breathless. Read the preview...

Pedro Zepeda / Gulfshore Playhouse

Nick Duckart and Kelley Curran in the
Gulfshore Playhouse production of "Venus in Fur."

FORGET ABOUT “FIFTY SHADES OF Grey.” This is the real thing. The Tony-nominated play “Venus in Fur” is an intelligent look at
sadomasochism, the dynamics of relationships and sexual power struggles. “There are so many layers upon layers upon layers (in this play):
who’s in power, sexual politics, gender politics,” says Kristen Coury,
director of the production of “Venus in Fur” that opens the new season
for Gulfshore Playhouse on Friday, Oct. 4, at The Norris Center in
Naples. ... “It’s the complete total opposite of ‘Fifty Shades of Grey,’ which
is all spelled out in lurid detail. In this play, it’s all evoked, it’s
all innuendo … and it’s all steamy.” Read the preview...

Gulfshore Playhouse Monday announced that the theatre would expand its "pay-what-you-can" preview program - two days before the season even starts!

“I believe that theatre is meant for the masses," Kristen Coury said in a prepared news release. "Enjoying art of any kind connects us once again with our humanity, our creativity and the divine inside all of us."

The Fort Myers performance is part of a five-date Florida swing that includes shows in Sarasota (12/1), Clearwater (12/4 & 12/5) and West Palm Beach (12/11). Fans can check yanni.com for the full schedule.

Interesting bit of news out of Orlando. Florida Rep's producing artistic director Robert Cacioppo will direct the Orlando Shakespeare Theater's production of "It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play."

Brad DePlanche, a frequent face at Florida Rep, who played Angel Second Class Clarence Oddbody in Fort Myers, will also appear in the Orlando production.

Inspired by Frank Capra's beloved American film, Orlando Shakes' It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play includes a five-member ensemble that brings to life a dozen familiar characters performed in the style of a 1940s live radio broadcast. Complete with commercial jingles and man-made sound effects, audiences will fall in love all over again with the selfless George Bailey and the gentle angel who saves his life on Christmas Eve. A holiday classic suitable for the entire family! It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play begins December 4 and runs through December 29, 2013 at the John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center in Loch Haven Park. Tickets ($17-$40) may be purchased by calling the Box Office at (407) 447-1700 or online at http://orlandoshakes.org. http://www.broadwayworld.com/orlando/article/Orlando-Shakespeare-Theater-to-Present-ITS-A-WONDERFUL-LIFE-A-LIVE-RADIO-PLAY-124-29-20130927

Florida Rep produced the show, which translates the beloved movie into a 90-minute, no-intermission play, in December 2011. The theater also added an elaborate half-hour pre-show routine, with telegram boys, roving townspeople, actors entering the set wearing furs and squealing teens seeking autographs from the "stars." There was even an sound table and a group singing vintage commercials in front of a WFRT logo.

Florida Rep opens their season with comedy "Social Security," the story of two married art dealers struggling with their impossible in-laws. As director Robert Cacioppo says, "aging in-laws have never been funnier – as long as they’re not your aging in-laws!"

Single tickets ($45/$40 and $25 for discounted
previews) are on sale through the box office, at 239-332-4488 and via floridarep.org. Subscriptions for the 2013-2014 season offer the best seats
and the biggest savings. Packages start as low as $126 for 6 plays and
offer up to 43% off single ticket prices.

Egan will perform her "Belle of Broadway" concert at 8 p.m. on Saturday, February 1, 2014. The concert will be held at BIG ARTS Schein Performance Hall. Tickets are $47 for loge seats, $42 for general seating and $5 for students with a valid student ID or children 17 and under when accompanied by a paying adult.